


Swallow Your Pride

by squirtturtle665



Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Ariadne won't take no for an answer, Arthur can't sleep without Eames, Domestic Fluff, Insomnia, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-30
Updated: 2017-09-12
Packaged: 2018-12-21 21:21:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11952870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/squirtturtle665/pseuds/squirtturtle665
Summary: "Over the last three days, Arthur has slept a total of four hours. This is probably why, even though he knows she’s coming over, even though he leaves the door unlocked for this specific reason, he still pulls a gun on Ariadne when she walks into his apartment.“Well,” she says, completely undeterred. “You look like shit.”"





	1. Chapter 1

              Over the last three days, Arthur has slept a total of four hours. This is probably why, even though he knows she’s coming over, even though he leaves the door unlocked for this specific reason, he still pulls a gun on Ariadne when she walks into his apartment.

              “Well,” she says, completely undeterred. “You look like shit.”

              Arthur comes back to reality and immediately feels like an idiot for pointing a gun at his best friend. He turns the safety back on and sets it on the kitchen table.

              “Sorry about that,” he mumbles.

              “I guess Eames was right,” Ariadne observes, closing the apartment door. “When was the last time you actually slept?”

              Arthur sits down at the table and chooses to ignore her question. “You talked to Eames?” he asks skeptically.

              “Of course I talked to Eames. You’ve ignored all his calls and texts for the last five days, and you thought he wouldn’t call me? Arthur, he thinks you’re dead.”

              “That’s ridiculous.”

              “Is it?” Ariadne walks over and pulls up a chair across from Arthur. “Clearly, you’re not yourself right now. In all of the jobs Eames has done by himself, what’s the longest it has taken you to respond to him?”

              Arthur immediately knows the answer, and the look on Ari’s face tells him that she knows, too. Most of the jobs that Eames has agreed to partake in are the dangerous ones because he’s the biggest adrenaline junkie that Arthur knows. Inception was enough adrenaline for Arthur’s entire life, and since then, he’s taken on fewer, easier jobs. When Eames is on those dangerous jobs, Arthur either drowns himself in work or sits next to the phone waiting to hear from him. Sometimes, it’s both. Arthur can’t help but respond right away when he gets a text from Eames.

              The only time Arthur didn’t respond to Eames within a few minutes was when he was really sick two years ago and forgot to charge his phone. So, no, it really isn’t ridiculous that Eames thinks Arthur is dead, but Arthur is stubborn, and he’s sticking to his story.

              “Ari, I don’t know what Eames told you, but I’m fine,” he insists. “He hasn’t taken a job in almost a year. I’m a little worried, but that’s it.”

              “No, you’re not worried. Eames and I are worried. A mama duck is worried about her chicks crossing the street without getting hit by a truck, but _this_ -,” Ariadne says, motioning up and down Arthur’s exhausted body. “-is something else entirely. You look like a drug addict who has been digging through the trash to try and find cocaine residue.”

              Arthur furrows his eyebrows. “That’s… oddly specific.”

              Ariadne sighs. She takes her phone out of her jacket pocket and slides it across the table. “Call him.” When Arthur doesn’t grab the phone, she snatches it back. “Fine, I will.”    

             “Wait, Ari, he’ll be home tomorrow. I can go one more day without sleep.”

              She looks at him, putting her phone up to her ear. “No, you absolutely can’t.

              Arthur runs a hand through his unwashed hair, feeling like absolute shit. He doesn’t want to bother Eames, but the only way he’ll be able to fall asleep is if he bothers Eames. They’ve been together for almost three years, since right after the Fischer job, and Eames has been on plenty of jobs without Arthur. It has never been this bad before, and clearly, it has freaked Arthur out enough that he completely shut himself down, only making things worse.

              “Hey, Eames,” Ariadne starts. “Yes, I’m here, and yes he’s alive. Well, barely… Eames… Eames… _Eames_ … I was kidding, okay? He is definitely more alive than dead. Very alive. Very breathing. Just not quite himself… Yes, probably insomnia… Yes… Good luck… You’re welcome.”

              She hands the phone to Arthur, and Arthur just kind of stares at it for a second before shutting his brain up and taking it from her.

              “Hi, Eames,” he says.

              “Let me get this straight: You’ve avoided my calls and texts for five days because you’re embarrassed that you can’t sleep while I’m not there, and at the same time, I’m off in another country, damn near stroking out over the fact that you could be dead?”          

              Maybe it’s Arthur’s sleep-deprived mind, but Eames doesn’t sound mad like Arthur thought he would.

              “It seems that way, yeah,” Arthur answers evenly, the closest thing to a confession that he’s willing to give Eames.

              Eames sighs, and Arthur swears he hears him chuckle. “You stubborn, insufferable, adorable dick. Give poor Ariadne her phone and call me back on yours, would you?”

              “Why?”

              “So I can talk to you until you fall asleep, something I would’ve happily done if you’d only asked.”

              “I didn’t want to bother you,” Arthur answers quietly.

              “Oh, darling, when will you learn that you’re never a bother? Not when I’m home, not when I’m working, not ever.”

              Arthur beams at that and then looks at Ariadne who has her arms crossed in front of her and a smile on her face.

              “I’ll call you right back,” Arthur says.

              “Please do,” Eames responds before Arthur hangs up.

              Arthur hands Ari her phone, and she sticks it back in her pocket. “Well, my work here is done,” she praises, standing up. “I don’t want to hear from you or Eames again until you’ve slept at least fourteen hours.”

              “I’m sorry you got dragged into this.”

              Ariadne walks towards the door. “Oh God, no, don’t be sorry. Next time, you know, swallow your pride, maybe?”

              Arthur lets out a laugh. “I think we both know that’s a long shot.”

              Ariadne shrugs. “Worth a shot. Sweet dreams,” she says, heading out the door.

              Arthur sits at the table for a minute longer before going into his and Eames’ bedroom in search of his phone.

             

             

             


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eames gets a call back from Arthur and realizes a few things about what he wants.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me for the late update, I've been having a really tough time in college. Writing this has really helped, though! Thank you for all your advice on the last chapter!

              “Hi, gorgeous,” Eames says with a smile when Arthur calls him back.

              Eames is sitting on the balcony in his hotel room in Sweden, watching the traffic down below. There is nothing that he wants more than to hear Arthur’s voice, to know that he’s okay, even if he just got off the phone with him a few minutes ago.

              “Eames.” The way Arthur says his name makes Eames’ chest hurt.

              “My darling Arthur,” Eames says with a sigh. “You’re in bed now, yeah?”

              “I am,” Arthur confirms.

              Eames can picture Arthur lying in their bed, all cozy under the blankets, and it makes him regret ever taking this job. It’s only been eight days, but Eames misses the feeling of wrapping his arms around Arthur at night, of holding him close to his chest.

              Arthur speaks up again before Eames can collect his thoughts. “There’s just something I don’t understand.”

              “What’s that?”

              “I don’t understand why this time is different. I always miss you like hell when you leave, but it’s never been like this before.”

              Eames smiles. “I thought it was obvious. Over the last ten months that we haven’t been working we’ve fallen into a wonderful routine together, haven’t we? You wake up in the morning and make yourself a coffee and graciously make me tea, which you place on the bedside table. Then, you get back in bed and curl your gorgeous body against mine where it’s warm until I wake up. We spend the day at the shops or watching Netflix or training or fucking or sometimes a combination of all four.”

              It might seem boring to do these same things for almost a year, but Eames never finds it boring to be with Arthur. He has never been happier in his entire life than he is in the last ten months. He took this job because he owes a favor, not because he truly wants to be doing it. What he really wants is a life with Arthur. He wants to buy a house and have kids with Arthur. He wants an unlimited amount of days with the one he loves.

              “What’s your point, Eames?” Arthur asks, pulling Eames from his thoughts.

              _My point is that I love you, and I love our routine, and I want to marry you_ , is what Eames wishes he would say.

              Instead, he says, “My point is that we’ve broken our routine that you’ve gotten so used to, and you don’t know what to do with yourself. You like things to be detailed and consistent. It’s what makes you the best point man in the world.”

              There’s about a minute silence in which Eames wonders whether he’s said something wrong.

              “You always notice everything,” Arthur says, leaving Eames confused.

              “Come again?”

              “I knew you’d notice that I haven’t been sleeping, and the last thing I wanted to do was worry you.”

              Eames feels both flattered and offended at the same time. “So, you thought that ignoring me was the best solution?”

              “Yes?”

              Eames lets out a breath. “Love, that clearly only worried me more.”

              “Can I blame the sleep deprivation for my idiocy?” Arthur asks sheepishly.

              The cool breeze causes goosebumps to pop up on Eames’ arms, continuing to solidify his need to be in bed with Arthur right now.

              “I wouldn’t quite call it idiocy,” Eames says. “I’d call it your tendency to be selfless to the point of self-destruction.”

              Arthur yawns, and Eames takes that as good of a sign as any. “I miss you,” Arthur confesses. “I think the whole city of London misses you.”

              “Well, of course they do,” Eames jokes. “Why wouldn’t they?”

              “Tell me about the job. How’d it go?”

              “Well, if you’d like me to bore you to sleep…,” Eames trails off. “Job went off without a hitch, surprisingly. Fatima was lovely, as usual. She’s turning into quite a fantastic extractor. She’s giving Dom a run for his money if you ask me. Downing’s designs got the job done. He’s nothing like our Ariadne, but he’s not bad. Lawrence will always be a shit point man. No one compares to you, darling. I mean, really. I don’t know why I take jobs without you anymore. Of course, I spent most nights getting drunk with Yusuf. I wanted to take his mind off of Ariadne, and he wanted to take my mind off of you. If I’m honest, I don’t think either of us succeeded.”

              “They both love each other,” Arthur says, his words slurring slightly. “Why don’t they make out and get on with it?”

              Eames laughs. “The last thing Yusuf wants to do is scare precious Ariadne away. If I would’ve tried that with you, I don’t think you would’ve reacted very well.”

              “Prob’ly not,” Arthur mumbles.

              Eames knows this Arthur voice. It’s the one he uses when he’s about to fall asleep while Eames asks him a question about the show on TV. It’s the one he uses when he wants to still be a part of the conversation but doesn’t have the energy to think of a coherent sentence. 

              “Get some rest, darling,” Eames says. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

              Eames hears Arthur quietly murmur, “Love you,” before he hangs up the phone.

              Eames calls up a number of people after that and leaves voicemails saying that no, he will not be accepting their job offer, nor will he likely be accepting any job offers in the future. Of course, he’ll always accept something from Yusuf or Ariadne or even Cobb, but the rest of the jobs with people he doesn’t have strong ties to just seem trivial compared to the life he wants with Arthur.

              In twelve hours, he gets to make that life a reality.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

              Arthur is asleep when Eames gets home the next morning. He is just as Eames pictured him, curled up under the covers, but he’s on Eames’ side of the bed. Eames leaves his luggage in the middle of their room, sheds his jacket, and gets into bed next to Arthur.

              Risking waking him up, Eames selfishly wraps his arms around Arthur and pulls him into his chest. He smiles and places a kiss on Arthur’s bare shoulder.

              “You’re back,” Arthur says, voice heavy with sleep.

              “How very observational of you,” Eames says. “Yes, I’m back, and for good this time.”

              Arthur is still for a moment before turning around. Eames can see tiredness in Arthur’s eyes, but he doesn’t look as deathly as Ariadne described him yesterday.

              Arthur clears his throat. “I’m sorry, what?”

              Eames kisses Arthur. “Hello, good morning. How are you feeling?” he asks, avoiding Arthur’s question.

              “Eames,” Arthur says in a warning tone that Eames missed all too much while he was away.

              Eames sits up, resting his back against the headboard. Arthur buries into his side and wraps his arms around Eames’ torso. He looks up at Eames expectantly.

              “I’m done,” Eames says simply. “So done.”

              Arthur raises his eyebrows. “With jobs or dreaming entirely?”

              “No, just jobs. I don’t think I could quit forging if I tried.” He pauses. “I just- I want a life with you Arthur”

              “Hmm,” Arthur hums. “And what does this life entail?” he asks, smiling sleepily.

              “A house in the English countryside, maybe,” Eames ponders. “Definitely kids. I want kids. Maybe pets, too.”

              “Go on,” Arthur urges.

              There’s no doubt in Eames’ mind what else he wants. The question is if Arthur wants the same thing. Looking at his face right now, the face Eames loves to look at and kiss so much, he’s pretty sure he knows the answer.

              “I want to marry you, Arthur.”

              Eames watches as Arthur’s eyes light up, a smile spreading on his face. Arthur sits up and swings his leg over Eames so that he’s straddling him.

              “Well, Mr. Eames, I think that sounds fucking fantastic,” Arthur says before pressing his lips to Eames’.

              Eames revels in the moment before pulling away. “I would love to kiss you all day, love, I really would, but your breath is something to marvel at.”

              Arthur laughs and falls forward, resting his head on Eames’s shoulder. He gets up to go to the bathroom, and Eames just sits there wondering what the hell just happened. Did he actually just propose? Did Arthur, a man Eames feels he doesn’t deserve, just say yes?

              It was by no means perfect or how Eames had intended it to happen, but that’s how their whole relationship has been. Arthur has ruined everyone else for Eames. How in the hell can he love anyone more than Arthur?

              He can’t, and he doesn’t want to. Not now, not ever.

             

             

               

             

             

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is a wedding chapter in order? Let me know! Thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Part 2 should be up soon, but I'm moving into my dorm on Saturday, so who knows? Thank you for reading! Also, if you have any advice for a college newbie, please let me know!


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